Pender Island Long Weekend
- Stephanie Michaud
- May 25, 2017
- 2 min read
Updated: Jul 15, 2018
2017 marks Canada's 150th anniversary - and as a celebration all national park entry fees are free! We used our first (early) summer long weekend to explore the closest national park to Vancouver- the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve.
Trip Itinerary
Pender Island is a quick 1.5 hour ferry ride from the Tsawwassen Ferry terminal in the Vancouver area. The BC Ferries Gulf Islands route runs twice a day, mid-morning and after work. Given the ferry schedules, we opted to stay at the Woods on Pender on Friday night to avoid hiking into the campsite at night.
For the other two nights, it was a relatively easy hike to the backcountry sites.
Approximate Trip cost: ~$300 per couple (including ferry costs, 1 night hotel stay, food, kayak rental, campground fees)
Destination Map
There are technically 2 islands, North and South Pender, which have a small canal between the two that was dredged years ago to make passage by boat easier. A bridge connects the two islands for vehicle traffic.
The Parks Canada website will tell you that you can only park at Canal Road and hike 4 km in. This is not true- you can park at Ainsley Road to shorten your hike in to the campground to about 2km along the Sentier Beaumont Trail. The hike to Mount Norman is well worth the effort, though perhaps not with your heavy packs on!
Most campsites are fairly closely clustered. If you are looking for privacy, sites 12 and 13 are obvious choices. We stayed at site 5, which was a bit removed from everyone else, but was also on the path to the bathrooms. We booked our campsites in advance, but sites 9,10,11 are first come first serve.
Beaumont beach is a popular destination for boaters, and throughout the day you will see many people come ashore to have a picnic, hike throughout the park, or even take a nap in the sun. The beach is dog friendly, but no campfires are allowed- making it mostly a visiting spot during the daytime.
Helpful Links
Make sure to reserve in advance if you are bringing your vehicle on board, as this is a smaller ferry and a popular route in the summer time.
Information about the islands that make up the entire national park
A lovely place to stay where you can rent a room, hotel style, or rent Airstreams and Campers for the Glamping experience. The restaurant on site, Coffee and Kitchen, is an excellent place for breakfast in the morning, and drinks at night
The only winery on Pender Island, be prepared to be wowed. Situated in a beautiful location with 5 unique wines to try, be prepared to stay for lunch and buy a bottle to share on the patio. Tastings on weekends from 11-4, Food truck from 12-3.
Recently opened, this cidery produces several variations of dry cider from apples and pears. The tasting includes 4 ciders, and they sell growlers to go.
Jay has plenty of kayak, bike and SUP inventory to keep you busy! There are also public showers and washrooms at the Marina.
Happy Adventures,
Stephanie
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